The Industry Standard - The castoff home technologies of 2013? - Comments

This guy is a complete

w00t — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 20:43:46 -0700

This guy is a complete moron. For starters, WiMax is already available in one city and is quickly expanding. Technologies like home integration over the web have been around for years (and some are even out now), but none have been able to stay in business for long enough. This article sounds like it way slapped together with some statistics and some smart ass writer. The section on video games was extremely vague, and did not say a single thing about how motion sensing is definitely a trend to pay attention to.

There is no thought in this

Mike — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 12:37:41 -0700

There is no thought in this article about autonomy and self reliance. People keep their files at home or in other private safe places for privacy and autonomy. I, for one, will never choose to do simple tasks using complex networks unless there is no other choice. Third party data warehouses are open to snooping and subpoenas.

Regardless of streaming technologies, I will always want a backup at home so I can download, then watch at my convenience. I can also edit out commercials and other irritations first.

I will never consider integrating my life into a cell phone - certainly not access controls to my house. A standalone - highly encrypted electronic key may be acceptable, as long as it is not linked to any server.

boo woo, i dont care about

Atlanta apartments — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 06:17:00 -0700

boo woo, i dont care about blu ray.

http://www.AtlantaApartmentstv.com

On the subject of file

Jenny — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:48:51 -0700

On the subject of file backup, sharing and storage ...

Online backup is becoming common these days. It is estimated that 70-75% of all PC's will be connected to online backup services with in the next decade.

Thousands of online backup companies exist, from one guy operating in his apartment to fortune 500 companies.

Choosing the best online backup company will be very confusing and difficult. One website I find very helpful in making a decision to pick an online backup company is:

http://www.BackupReview.info

This site lists more than 400 online backup companies in its directory and ranks the top 25 on a monthly basis.

I still think that

cporpheus — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 18:57:22 -0700

I still think that touch-based electronics need to be engineered to resist sweat. Ask any iPod owner.

The castoff home technologies of 2013?

Don Reisinger — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 10:55:56 -0700

Blu-ray

Blu-ray may not be found in many digital homes in 2013 unless vendors act quickly. According to Forrester Research's James McQuivey, adoption rates of the format are extremely low. The HD format suffers from a slew of issues: Media prices are too high, the Blu-ray players are expensive, movies can't be transferred, and HD downloads are right around the corner.

Even though Blu-ray succeeded in beating HD DVD, it still needs to compete with the wrinkled old man in the room: DVD, which has a huge installed base and billions of discs in circulation. And if broadband speeds increase to a more suitable level, Blu-ray may be skipped in favor of downloads and streaming entertainment. Can you say, LaserDisc?

Desktop PCs

Desktop PCs have been around for decades, but in recent years, notebooks have taken over. Providing comparable processing and storage power, but far better mobility, notebooks PCs have quickly become the cornerstone of many digital homes. And while PC gaming has kept the desktop market alive, even that stronghold is threatened by more powerful notebooks and next-gen consoles that can keep up with desktop graphics capabilities.

According to recent data, desktop PC sales continue to dwindle as notebooks gain more market share. And if sales continue to decline and touchscreen technology improves, desktops may become a rarity five years from now.

Slow mobile networks

As anyone with a first-generation iPhone knows, slow mobile networks like EDGE are unbearable if you're trying to do some browsing on the go. But luckily for you, most carriers are responding to consumers' need for speed, and have installed 3G networks all over the country. And with 4G just around the corner, 2G to 2.75G's days may be numbered. Phew!

Even better, 3G technology could be on the way out in five years as long as telcos and vendors make serious inroads with 4G.

Locally stored files

Sure, it might be a long shot, but there's significant evidence to show that you may not be storing files locally in your digital home in 2013.

As Web applications continue to evolve and online storage becomes less costly, more consumers will start moving toward online storage as a way to store important data and maybe even backup data prior to a disaster. Microsoft and AOL have both publicly said that they want to lead the charge in online storage. Amazon also has a strong foothold with its S3 storage service. It allows users to store large files, but reliability issues and even the cost of storing information -- $0.15 per GB -- makes them a less than ideal option right now.

Desktop operating systems

Although Windows 7 will be installed locally and the next iteration of the Mac OS will be too, it's only a matter of time before the traditional operating system gives way to the Internet.

Already, Adobe has said that the online component will be an integral part of its applications going forward. Companies like Google have also done quite well at designing and launching office applications that depend on a Web browser. And as online applications catch up to desktop software in terms of functionality and reliability, the desktop will quickly lose ground as people become more inclined to choose the online world over the offline. In essence, the browser will become the new OS.

Table of contents from the Industry Standard special feature, Ten Technologies from the Digital Home of 2013:

Introduction: What your future really looks like: The Digital Home of 2013
1. The Digital Home of 2013: High-speed telecommunications
2. The Digital Home of 2013: It's an HD world
3. The Digital Home of 2013: Gaming gets real
4. The Digital Home of 2013: Reach out and touch something
5. The Digital Home of 2013: Automated home control
6. The Digital Home of 2013: Green goes mainstream
7. The Digital Home of 2013: Welcome to the cloud
8. The Digital Home of 2013: The rise of streaming media
9. The Digital Home of 2013: Online distribution of TV, movies
10. The Digital Home of 2013: Collaborating across town, and across the world
Sidebar: The castoff home technologies of 2013?